Hot spots for a business lunch: there are many restaurants in Alaska; try someplace new to take a client.

• Author: Martin, Gary L.

You're a businessman in Alaska and you want to take a new client and the marketing director out to lunch and discuss their new project. So you call your favorite eatery to make a reservation only to discover that it is booked until 3 p.m. and your client has a flight at 2:20 p.m.

ABM did some research and compiled a list of business-friendly restaurants in Alaska. The ones written about in this article are in Anchorage, and I personally had lunch at each of them and will provide first-hand information. Friends and associates suggested the other restaurants to me.

(All pertinent information for the restaurants in this article can be found in the accompanying sidebar.)

The Bridge

The Bridge is located under the A Street Bridge that spans Ship Creek. The restaurant, which opened last August, is definitely unique when it comes to cuisine and location.

Reservations are accepted, and according to Ashi Samarasingher, vice president of operations, The Bridge can manage groups of up to 100 people. Samarasingher emphasizes the point that larger groups (12 or more) do require reservations.

What makes The Bridge special is its cuisine and location. In the winter, patrons will see the iced-up creek and snow-covered mountains in the background, and in the summer the creek hosts a large number of sports fishermen. Watching them, especially when one hooks into a large king salmon, is exciting.

Cuisine

As for the cuisine, Samarasingher says the contemporary word for it is "fusion." But he also says, "Actually our food can best be described as a combination of cuisines including Continental, Polynesian, Asian and Hawaiian. We have created all of our recipes, and yes, I'd say they are pretty unique."

One of Samarasingher's favorites is The Bridge burger. For $9, you get a third-of-a-pound of hamburger, flavored with cracked black pepper, garlic and rosemary, served on a Kaiser sesame bun.

Non-Meat Eaters

For the vegetarian there is fettuccini, a tofu roasted-vegetable terrine, a grilled asparagus and tomato salad, and an Asian Caesar salad.

Besides alcohol beverages and the traditional coffees, teas and sodas, there are also non-alcoholic drinks that include a very refreshing mango spritzer and strawberry lemonade at $3 each.

The lunch menu prices range between the $9 burger and a $14 pan-seared halibut filet.

"I don't think there is another restaurant like the Bridge in Alaska," said Samarasingher. "It's the flavors of our food that make us special; it's a whole awakening of flavors for your taste buds.

"Take, for example, our pan-seared halibut; it is topped with ginger, garlic, cilantro and orange mustard panko crust and served on stir-fried noodles and drizzled with sweet chili sauce. Now that is a combination of flavors that come together to make a truly unique culinary experience."

Organic Oasis Restaurant & Juice Bar

Organic Oasis Restaurant & Juice Bar has been opened since April 1999 and serves only all-natural foods. Steve Plante', the owner-operator, says they use only the best quality of unprocessed food products.

The Organic Oasis is located in Midtown Anchorage on Spenard Road, about a block north of Northern Lights Boulevard. Reservations may be made, and groups to a dozen people can be accommodated. There also is a separate meeting room with a table that will seat 12 people that has audio visual equipment for presentations. The restaurant also offers free wireless Internet capability.

Quality Food and Beverage

But what really makes the Organic Oasis different, according to Plante', is the quality of its food and beverage. Even the wine and beer, which are both domestic and imported, are organic. There are 31 vegan items on the lunch menu, which means they have not been cooked in or contain any meat products.

For the carnivores, there are more than a dozen options on the menu, which has about 100 items. It includes appetizers, salads, sandwiches, pizzas, desserts and beverages-including some very specialized health drinks like two-ounce...